The University insists everything is under control at theIntellectual Property Office, despite recent negative mediaattention calling the office understaffed, underfunded andinsufficient.
A recent article in the Baton Rouge Business Report announcedthat a system-wide audit of how the office handles patents andfinances would soon take place. LSU President and UniversityInterim Chancellor William Jenkins denies that information.
“We are doing everything we can to find out how we can becomemore efficient in the Intellectual Property Office,” Jenkins said,”but there is no audit.”
The Intellectual Property Office helps professors get patentsfor inventions for $5,000 a piece, said Mani Iyer, the office’sdirector. They license these patents and then collect royalties andlicensing fees from whoever purchases the license.
Jenkins said the University simply is looking at the office tofind out how much funding should be given to the office to allowthem to issue as many patents as possible.
The Business Report said the IP budget will double the current$100,000 dollars a year beginning in July 2005.
Jenkins confirmed the office would receive more funding in thecoming year.
“We hope to do better this year and next,” Jenkins said.
Iyer said he continuously is promised a budget increase butnever sees any money.
“This office achieves a lot with very little money,” Iyersaid.
Over the last 15 years, the research department’s funding hasgone from $10 million to $134 million, Iyer said. The IP office,which obtains patents for this department’s inventions, hasmaintained virtually the same budget for that entire time.
The Business Report article’s main source, Kevin Kelly, is amechanical engineering professor at the University.
Iyer said Kelly thinks he or any other faculty hoping topurchase licenses should get them for less or even no money becausethey are affiliated with the University.
The office’s mission is “to protect the University’sintellectual property — new ideas, inventions and discoveries –by obtaining patents and copyrights,” according to the UniversityWeb site.
According to the Business Report, Louisiana relies on the officeto move faculty inventions from academia to the private sector toboost the state’s economic development, but it is too focused onprotecting the University’s financial stake in their research.
Iyer emphasized the need to focus on the positive things theUniversity has done, and referred to Kelly as “the one rotten applethat ruins the whole batch.”